Denatured spirits and method of making the same



Patented May 12, 1931 RALPH H. MORE, OF LEONIA, NEW JERSEY DENATUREDSPIRITS AND MEIIHOD OF MAKING l floDrawing. Application filed May 9,

This invention relates to denatured spirits and methods of making thesame. By spirits, I refer to either ethyl alcohol or methyl alcoholeither in the anhydrous 5 form or mixed with small amounts of water,

e. g., 95 per cent. ethyl alcohol, or 95 per cent. methyl alcohol.

An object of the invention is to provid a denaturant for use in thepreparation of spirits for scientific and industrial purposes which ismore readily soluble in spirits than similar materials now employed,whereby removal of the denaturant for the purpose of unlawfully usingthe alcohol in the manufacture of beverages or for other purposes,

is rendered more difiicult.

A further object of the invention is to provide a denaturant having astronger and more unpleasant taste than materials now employed.

In carrying the invention into efiect, I employ shale oil from which thesaturated hydrocarbons have been removed by treatment with liquid sulfurdioxide, a process similar to the Edeleanu process of refinin ordinarywell petroleum. By this means, obtain unsaturated hydrocarbons of theolefinic series having but a small percentage of unsaturatedhydrocarbons present, such as heptane, octane, nonane, decane, andtraces of similar hydrocarbons of the series C I-1 I prefer as adenaturant that portion distilling in the gasoline boiling range.

These olefinic hydrocarbons are employed as a denaturant for spirits insubstantially the same manner that ordinary hydrocarbons of thegasoline'boiling range arenow employed for the treatment of spirits forscientific and industrial purposes and to thereby render the alcoholunfit for beverage purposes. The new denaturant may be mixed with 95 ercent. ethyl alcohol in substantially any desired ratio, e. g., equalparts even at freezing temperature, whereas ordinary hydrocarbons of thegasoline boiling range can be added'only in very small amounts,particularly at winter temperatures. The increased solubility of theolefinic hydrocarbons in thus a material ad- 50 vantage in denaturingalcohol. My pre- 1925. Serial No. 29,219.

ferred procedure is to add to 100 volumes of the spirit 5 to 10 volumesof the lower boiling olefinic hydrocarbons and stir.

A further advantage incident to the use of the olefinic hydrocarbon isthat it is not necessary to use benzene or toluene as a third orblending component to bring about the mixing of the spirit and thehydrocarbon.

As stated, the mixing of the denaturant and the spirits may be done inany suitable way and the denaturant may be employed in substantially thesame proportion as ordinary hydrocarbons of the gasoline boiling rangeare now employed or in greater proportlonif desired.

If desired, the pyridine and alkylated pyridine from the shale oil maybe used with the olefinic hydrocarbons em loyed as a denaturant, whichwill give the enatured spirits an odor of yridine as well as an odor ofthe olefinic ydrocarbons, and also increase the difficulty of anyattempt to remove the denaturant. The term pyridine as employed incertain of the claims contemplates within its scope not only ordinarypyridine but any of the pyridines present in or derived from shale oil.

It is well known in the art that the amounts of nitrogen com ounds ofthe pyridine type present in s ale oil are quite minor.- In general, theproportion is of the order of one to three per cent, although in somecases it may run slightly higher or lower, and in one exceptional casehas been known to amount to ten per cent. The same percentages ofpyridine hold true in the case of that portion of the shale oil whichdistills in the gasoline range, as holds true for the shale oil as awhole.

A'mixture of these olefinic hydrocarbons and spirits manufactured forindustrial purposes is far more dificult to se arate into the alcoholand the denaturant or the purpose of obtaining alcohol that can be 95used in the manufacture of beverages than is alcohol denatured withordinary hydrocarbons of the gasoline boiling range or other denaturantsnow employed.

1 The term unsaturated hydrocarbons of j 2 neoaeaa shale oil as employedin certain of the claims contemplates within its scope olefinichydrocarbons obtained from shale oil and containing small amounts ofincidental 5 impurities, such as, for example, approximately per cent.of saturated hydrocar bons and unsaturated hydrocarbons of other thanthe olefinic series. Substantially ,all of this material distils in thegasoline boiling 10 range.

While I have described in detail the preferred practice of my process,it is to be understood that the details of procedure may be widelyvaried without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scopeof the SllbjOlIlGd claims.

I claim:

l. The process of denaturing an alcohol which comprises adding thereto aliquid fraction of shale oil freely soluble therein and having anexceedingly unpleasant taste, said fraction comprising unsaturatedolefinic hydrocarbons distilling in the gasoline oiling range.

2. The process of denaturing an alcohol which comprises adding thereto aliquid fraction of shale oil freely soluble therein and having anexceedingly unpleasant taste, said fraction comprising pyridines andunsaturated olefinic hydrocarbons distilling 1n the gasoline boiling rane.

In testimony whereo I afix my signature.

RALPH H. MoKEE.

